JMG Artblog

Communitas Art Show: "Honoring the Web of Life"

Etching made from leaves by artist Rona Satten.  She writes, "Sometimes leaves remind us of body with its organs, veins and cells.  They mirror our strength, fragility, complexity, beauty, and transitory nature.  We are all part of the mystery and majesty of the universe."

Communitas
Friday, October 5, 2007 5:00 -8:00 PM
Please join Communitas for an exquisite evening of beauty and friendship as they celebrate the works of this group of wonderful artists and the exploration of the topic "Honoring the Web of Life" through mixed media.

Todd Breitling * Jake Grossman * Judith Dawson * Marianne Heib * Judy DiCanio * Whitney Porter * Ron Greenberg * Rona Satten * Jane Warren

Call Shari Landau 610-980-HEAL (4325) for directions
Communitas 201 Sabine Ave., Suite 100 Narberth, PA 19072

For a review of the show by the Mainline Times please click here.

Andrew Wyeth: Thoughts

I wanted to get in a quick post about my visit to the Andrew Wyeth: Memory & Magic exhibit at the High Museum of Art in Atlanta for those that are wanting to see if it is worth the trip.

In short, the exhibit is Fabulous!!! If you can make it: go, be sure to listen to the audio tour and leave plenty of time to peruse the 100+ drawings and paintings. Seeing the new addition to the High Museum is a plus as well. The curators have created an outstanding show that is very interesting and surprisingly informative.

Find out about: Helga, Christina and Betsy; the symbolism and riddles in the paintings; Wyeth's persistent use of sketches until the painting works; the overbearing father and childhood hip disease; his self-portraits with most never showing his face; the representational style (eliminating the person in lieu of an object that represented the person)  for painting meaningful people in his life; and the list could go on and on.

The exhibit will only be seen at the High Museum of Art (November 12, 2005 to February 26, 2006) and later at the Philadelphia Museum of Art (March 29 to July 16, 2006).

If, unfortunately, you can't make it to see the exhibit then check out the excellent exhibit catalogue by clicking here.

Photograph by Jefferson Green, JMG Artblog.

Jacob van Ruisdael Exhibit: Philadelphia Museum of Art

Jacob Isaacksz. van Ruisdael, (Dutch, active Haarlem and Amsterdam, 1628/29-1682)
The Dam with the Weigh House at Amsterdam
c. 1675-80
Oil on canvas
21 x 26 inches
Staatliche Museen Preussischer Kulturbesitz, Gemäldegalerie, Berlin

The Philadelphia Museum of Art offers a comprehensive and enlightening look at the Dutch painter, Jacob van Ruisdael. The exhibit features paintings, sketches and etchings of the Dutch Master of Landscape painting. 

The curator of the show, Lloyd DeWitt (Assistant Curator/European Painting before 1900), organized the material so that it was informative for the viewer. A great example of this is the layout of Jacob van Ruisdael's sketches for the painting The Dam with the Weigh House at Amsterdam next to the actual painting. It was fascinating to look at the sketches and then view the painting to compare what had been modified. There were also a variety of etchings that had been printed in various phases of their creation (some of the changes may or may not have been added by Jacob van Ruisdael) that gives the viewer an idea of the artist's creative process.

After I visited the show I stopped by the musueum's art store and purchased a copy of the exhibit catalogue. I wanted to learn more about the artist and to see what made him unique in history. I found out that Jacob van Ruisdael had actually changed his name from Jacob De Groyer. He changed his name along with his uncle Salomon. Jacob used van Ruisdael while Salomon used van Ruysdael. They changed their name to that of a castle near their father's birthplace of Blaricum. Salomon van Ruysdael was an accomplished painter in his own right and probably taught Jacob the art.

Jacob van Ruisdael was a doctor as well as a painter. He painted landscapes, cityscapes and seascapes often with scenes from everyday life. One thing that I liked was how Jacob van Ruisdael would show scenes with perspective and often used dead trees or other natural forms to give his paintings great depth.

Definitely make the visit to the Philadelphia Museum of Art to take in this oustanding exhibit (October 23, 2005 to February 5, 2006).

For more information click on the links below:
Jacob Van Ruisdael
Biography from Getty Museum
Biography from Web Gallery of Art
Rijksmuseum Biographical Information on Jacob van Ruisdael
Rijksmuseum Biographical Information on Salomon van Ruysdael

Wolf Kahn at Chicago Art Fairs 2005

Half Hidden 2003
Oil on Canvas
52x66 inches

Jerald Melburg Gallery, Charlotte, NC, brought a fabulous collection of Wolf Kahn paintings to show at Art in the Park 2005 and Chicago Contemporary and Classic. Most of the Kahn paintings were at the Art in the Park and the way the gallery exhibited them made the booth feel like a mini-museum.  I recommend visiting the Jerald Melburg Gallery web site to see several beautiful Wolf Kahn paintings. Kahn's use of pastels is a study in color. Highly recommended.

Art in the Park 2005: Chicago

Disbelief
Martina Nehrling
2004
60 x 60 inches
acrylic on canvas

One of my favorite paintings at Art in the Park 2005 (Chicago) was this one by Martina Nehrling (presented by Zg Gallery, Chicago). To fully appreciate the impact of her painting one needs to see this painting in person. I was mesmerized. The optical illusion and the bold blast of colors work very well together. Check out the Zg Gallery site for additional paintings by the artist.

Chicago Contemporary and Classic ("CCC"): Two Favorites

Edward Lentsch and the team of Brad Kuhl/Monique Leyton were two standouts among the hundred plus artists at the CCC. The visual impact of their art combined with the use of unique materials made both artists work stand out in the large field of exhibitors. I would recommend not missing their exhibits during your visit to the CCC Art Fair. Here are brief descriptions of the artists work:

Edward Lentsch (represented by Flanders/Minneapolis): Abstract. Each of the 8-10+ paintings shown by the artist had a similar yet very different feel. Some with earthy, rich tones while others were shades of black and white. All with changing textures. A few of the paintings had a thick glossy finish while several had an understated matte. Mr. Lentsch described his technique as having taken years to perfect through a scientific approach to developing his materials. He thought the key to his paintings was the harmony of the materials his creations brought to the viewer.

Brad Kuhl/Monique Leyton (represented by Carol Jazzar/Miami): In great contrast to Edward Lentsch, the team of Brad Kuhl and Monique Leyton used bright, bold, vivid colors to make their statement. The team of young artists developed the use of colored tape in various lengths, shapes and  sizes to  "paint" their  canvas. Carol Jazzar, owner of the Carol Jazzar gallery representing Kuhl/Leyton, indicated that the scenes depicted in the "Tapage" exhibit were created by taking images from various tv shows, news, magazines and photographs. The artist team would then create their work graphically on a computer making sure the colors, shapes and composition work. The last step would be to apply the tape to the canvas jointly. Their work needs to be seen in person in order to get the full impact of this moving and capitivating show. A must see.

Chicago Contemporary & Classic: Preview

The Chicago Contemporary & Classic ("CCC") Art Fair kicked off its event on April 27th with a preview of the event for the press and VIP's. Chicago blogger, Dan Hopewell, posted a fantastic overview of the night on his art blog, ICONODUEL. In additon to JMG Artblog, check out ICONODUEL often for updates on this event as well as NOVA and Art in the Park this weekend. Other bloggers like Art or Idiocy? are posting their views of the Chicago Art Fairs.

Carol Jazzar sent me some information on the debut of work by Brad Kuhl and Monique Leyton called "TAPAGE". The image on the left, "One Bourbon, One Scotch and One Beer" , is one of the pieces in the show and is visually very provocative. I am looking forward to seeing the work live tomorrow.

Ms.Jazzar writes on cjazzart.com the following about the Kuhl/Leyton work being shown:  The collaborative work of tape on canvas of artists Kuhl & Leyton begins with found elements of imagery depicting crime and accident scenes, reconstructed using individual figures, groupings and backgrounds. All aspect of the work, from color choice to composition have been executed in collaboration. “Working as a pair is both stimulating and tiring, but it transforms the work; it produces a piece neither of us is capable of independently” said Brad. “We were in Rome at the time we create the first tape piece. The guards in Rome have a much greater presence than the ones in America, and it was a time of heightened security alerts for Americans abroad. It was inevitable that we wound up dealing with ideas of security  and authority.”

Highlights: Stuart Davis and American Abstraction: A Masterpiece in Focus

Highlights of the Stuart Davis and American Abstraction: A Masterpiece in Focus
(Images courtesy of the Philadelphia Museum of Art; a special thanks to Frank Luzi-Sr. Press Officer) 

Image 1: Swing Landscape, 1938, Stuart Davis (American, 1894-1964). Oil on canvas, 86 3/4 x 172 7/8 inches. Indiana University Art Museum, Bloomington, IN. Estate of Stuart Davis/Licensed by VAGA, New York, NY

Image 2: Something on the Eight Ball, 1953-54, Stuart Davis (American, 1894-1964). Oil on canvas, 56 x 45 inches. Philadelphia Museum of Art: Purchased with the Adele Haas Turner and Beatrice Pastorius Turner Memorial Fund, 1954

Image 3: Boats Drying, Gloucester, c. 1916, Stuart Davis (American, 1894-1964). Oil on canvas, 22 1/2 x 18 1/2 inches. Philadelphia Museum of Art: Partial and promised gift of Hannah L. and J. Welles Henderson.

Image 4: Abstraction, 1940, Adolf Frederick Reinhardt (American, 1913-1967). Opaque watercolor on white wove paper, Sheet: 9 7/8 x 15 13/16 inches. Philadelphia Museum of Art: A. E. Gallatin Collection, 1946.

Image 5: Abstraction with a Palette, c.1930, Arshile Gorky (American, born Armenia, 1904-1948). Oil on canvas, 48 x 35 15/16 inches. Philadelphia Museum of Art: Gift of Bernard Davis, 1942

Philadelphia Museum of Art: Stuart Davis and American Abstraction (ends April 17, 2005)

The Philadelphia Museum of Art's ("PMA") exhibit Stuart Davis and American Abstraction: A Masterpiece in Focus has one week left for viewing. Curators Kathleen A. Foster (The Robert L. McNeil, Jr. Curator of American Art) and Michael Taylor (The Muriel and Philip Berman Curator of Modern Art) have taken advantage of the return to the Indiana University Art Museum from an exhibit in Paris of the rarely lent Stuart Davis' masterpiece, 'Swing Landscape'. The Curators have created a contextual view of American abstract painting by including excellent examples of paintings by the artists that pioneered and defended the movement  in America. The exhibit includes drawings and paintings from Davis before and after 'Swing Landscape' as well as paintings by contemporaries Arshile Gorky, Ad Reinhardt, Francis Criss, and Patrick Henry Bruce.

There are a couple of reasons that I like and recommend this exhibit:  First is that in Stuart Davis' work one can see the precursors of several movements like abstract expressionism and pop art. Second, Davis' paintings are lively and full of color and symbolism. Sitting on the bench in the middle of room 119 at the PMA looking at 'Swing Landscape'  I could see the energy (the jazz) he was trying to convey.

The only disappointments I had about the exhibit were the lack of a catalogue by the PMA giving the curators a chance to educate the public more about Davis' impact on American art and the remoteness of the exhibit at the museum. I was at the Davis exhibit for more than two hours and saw only a handful of the hundreds (or thousands) of visitors that were in the museum for the Dali exhibit.

Note: If you can't make it to see the collection in person click here to see the highlights of the Stuart Davis and American Abstraction: A Masterpiece in Focus exhibit.

Publications:
Stuart Davis
Stuart Davis in Gloucester
Stuart Davis Drawings
Stuart Davis: Sketchbook
American Abstract
Arshile Gorky